SMTB Part 14: Rays of a Beautiful Sun
JANUARY 15, 2020 NARUKI CITY "What the hell's going on out there?" Shinji asked while looking out the café's window. The sky had turned red, and everything seemed to be at a complete standstill. Birds were hovering motionless in the air. "How does this day manage to keep getting more bizarre?" asked Yūji. Then, they heard banging on the door. "Hey, HEY! Let me in, c'mon! It's freaky as hell out here!" Yūji cautiously looked out the door. Standing there in his signature black suit with "King of the Beasts" on the back was Kaido. "Thank God, someone that's actually moving. You seeing the shit out here?!" he griped. "Hang on one second." Yūji responded. He turned away from the door, and grabbed a pool cue from the wall. He went to open the door, but Kaido had vanished. He looked around. "Where on Earth...hey Shinji, did you happen to see--" He turned to where Shinji was sitting, but all that was there were a few dissipating shadow particles. "Shinji...? This isn't exactly an appropriate time for practical--huh?" He noticed he had started being engulfed in shadow. "This is--" He too disappeared. The pool cue stayed motionlessly in place. --- "Come on, Hiyoko, pick up..." Outside of town, a train had ceased to move. Umihime tried calling Hiyoko to no avail. "I hope those kids are alright. That sky doesn't look promising." She walked to the front of the train, into the conductor's car. "Hey, why the sudden sto--" She opened the door to find nobody there. "Nobody there...? Come to think of it...on top of no one moving, why are there so few people on this train..." She reached for her phone again, only to notice the shadows creeping up her body. "What the hell--" She dissipated. --- Kyohei Ishimaru sat in front of a shop in the market district, petrified by what he had been seeing. "Begeru! Where are ya, buddy?! Not the time for hide-and-seek, ya loaf..." Sakura and Jobin walked past. "He couldn't have gone that far. Hey, kid!" Jobin yelled out. Ishimaru mumbled incoherently to himself. "Kid, hey, hey, calm down. What the hell's going on around here?!" Jobin demanded. "He-he-he's come ba-ba-back, he isn't d-d-d-d-d-dead..." Ishimaru babbled. "What's that supposed to mean? Who isn't dead?" "Jobin--!" He turned around to see Sakura dissolving into shadow. "Babe?! What the--" He saw his own hand turn to shadow. "Son of a--" He vanished. A figure walked over to Ishimaru. "Oh, how the mighty have fallen." Ishimaru looked up fearfully. He snickered. "You...you won't win..." "Won't win? Do you not see the world now? What about this tells you that I haven't won?" "The girl. She is the one thing in this world you fear..." "Why would I be afraid of my sister?" Ishimaru snickered again. "You're too envious of her to not be! You claim to seek salvation...deep down, all you seek is acknowledgement...to flaunt your superiority on the highest stage...it was apparent even before your death..." Shadows began creeping up Ishimaru's body. "Rest assured, it'll all come crashing down around you. You may be the resurrection...the girl is revelation." He disappeared. Inside the flower market, Tan stared in disbelief at the bathroom sink, the water suspended in midair. "The hell...hey Mama...you haven't been sneaking more 'exotic' shit in, have ya?" "Nothing that would cause this, hon. I'm not sure what could..." Hana responded. "I left my phone next door, I'm gonna go grab it..." Tan ran out. Shortly after, Hana heard a yell. "What the fuck?!" Tan yelled out. Hana ran next door. When she looked inside, Tan was nowhere to be seen. Standing behind the counter, staring at his own memorial picture, was Tohru. "Toh...ru...?" uttered a stunned Hana. "Hello, Mother. I know this must be unbelievable. But given what's been happening recently, is this really so beyond belief?" "There's beyond belief, and there's my murdered son standing here talking like nothing's wrong." "That is because nothing is truly wrong. On the contrary, it's never been more right." He looked at the picture of his father. "Oh, Father. The one who convinced me that this was the proper path to take. The one who properly appreciated my talents..." "Are you still going on about that? Tohru...we knew how gifted a soul you were...are." "Let's not beat around the bush, Mother. It was obvious who curried favor between me and Ringo. Why else would you have tried for her so quickly after I was born? Was it so apparent early on that I was insufficient for you?" "That is a lie and you know it, Tohru. She was unplanned, that's all. You all are my children, and I love you all the exact same way. You were just so different from each other that you needed different upbringing. If you perceived that as being different levels of love, then I'm sorry. But...why are you here now?" "I just wanted to speak with you one last time." "Last time?" Hana thought for a moment. "Tohru...where's Tan?" Tohru smirked. He picked up an apple and began tossing it around. "Where you're about to be. With the rebels. With Ringo's annoying friends. With Father." Hana's eyes widened. The shadows began to overtake her. "Tohru, please! Don't do thi--" "Goodbye, Mother." She vanished. Tohru took a bite out of the apple. He sat it down on the counter, and walked away. --- SOME TIME AFTER NARUKI ASCENSION ACADEMY Silence. The once-bustling halls of the Academy were now devoid of life. Not a student or instructor to be found. All that lined the classrooms and halls were assorted books and possessions that had been dropped. No instructions, no hallway chatter, no announcements. Just complete, total silence. The dorms were much the same. With one exception. One student remained. Rin had set an orange gym bag on her bed. The bag had the letters "T. K." written on the front, followed by a heart. She started putting things into the bag. Her writing journal. A mix tape labeled "Stateside's greatest hits - Jugo". The Bounsweet plush Jin had given her. She looked to her nightstand. She picked up a photo of herself and all of her friends at the New Year's festival they had attended. It was a happy image. A happy memory. Far from the reality she was now faced with. She placed the photo in the bag, zipped it up and walked out the door. She walked through the unmoving city to the market district. To her family's shops. Normally her brother would be yucking it up with customers with that big grin on his face. Her mother would be trimming the bigger flowers and humming a happy tune. She went inside the flower shop. It was unnatural, everything here being so still and lifeless. Then, she saw them. She saw the small, blue flowers near the back of the store. Rosemary flowers. She plucked one. The despair welled up inside her again. A tear fell down her face. She placed the flower where her hair was tied. She went next door to the produce shop. She knelt down in front of the photo of her father. She put her hands together, and prayed in silence. After opening her eyes, she looked over to the picture of Tohru. No emotion. She rose up, grabbed her bag, and walked out the door. She walked out of the city. She walked, and kept walking. Eventually, she sat down by a tree off the side of the road. She took out a cassette player, another gift from Jugo, and put in the tape. She pressed play. "Oooh, child, things are gonna get easier~. Oooh, child, things'll get brighter...~" She took out her journal. With a sigh, she started to write. Hey, Papa. And Mama. And Tan. And everyone else. She paused. She wiped a tear from her eye, and continued. I don't know what I'm writing this for. Prosperity? My sanity? My last words? I don't know. I don't even know how long it's been. Days? Weeks? There's no way to know. Clocks don't move. It's stuck on 5:47 pm., January 15, 2020. There's no sun. No moon. No wind. No rain. Some things still work for me. Jugo's cassette player still plays. I can make the faucets and showers work, but only when I touch them. They just freeze up again after. I don't know why this is happening. The power not being absolute? Some kind of aura? Force of will making it happen? Nothing about this world makes sense anymore. I wonder if this was ever worth it. I thought changing the hearts of bad people would help, but now everyone whose lives I've affected are gone. The only people left are frozen in place, waiting for the 'salvation' they've been promised. I know the truth. Tohru doesn't care about anyone's plight but his own. He just wants to be in control, to know that he stands above everyone else. To know that everything that happens is because of his will. I keep staring at my arms. I'd come to accept them as a reminder to never give in to despair. Now I just hate them again. They're emblematic of everything Tohru's taken from me. My self-respect. My happiness. My friends. My family. I was the happiest girl in the world. Now I don't know if there's anything left to be happy about. I'll never go along with his plans. I won't lord over people like some fake goddess. I won't give myself over to the stalker he's lined up for me. I'm gonna walk far, far away from here. From him. From every painful memory that's left there. I have one message for you all. To Tenko. To JoJo. To Hiyoko. To Jin. To Jugo. To Rose. I love you all so, so much. I'm sorry this was done to you. I see your faces every time I close my eyes. I dragged you along on something that was fake from the start. We should all be enjoying ourselves right now, doing normal teenager things. Instead... She wiped away another tear. Papa, please look after Mama and Tan for me. Tell them how much I love and miss them, and how sorry I am that they got dragged down because of me. Them and everyone else. I don't know where I'm going, or what I'll do when I get there. I'm not giving up hope. I'm giving up trying to fight this as I am now. There has to be a way to fix this. One way or another, I'll find a way. I have all the time to find it. Goodbye, for now. Someday, some way, I'll make this right. Because I'm not giving up hope. I won't let him have a win over me. Whatever it takes. She shut the book. She took her headphones out, and put away the cassette player. She took out a small pillow from her bag, that was embroidered with an image of a person in a red costume. The words "Sentai Appleranger" were written on it. Hiyoko had made it for her as thanks for helping with the kids from the orphanage. She smiled, took out the Bounsweet plush, laid down and closed her eyes. --- When she awoke, she resumed walking. Eventually, she reached a small town. A few people were frozen in place along the walkways. She walked past one bespectacled man who was apparently in the process of tripping over part of the sidewalk. The papers he was holding were frozen in midair. Stopping for a moment, Rin collected the papers, and put them back in the man's folder. Then, she adjusted his legs so that he wouldn't fall over should he be unfrozen. "I don't know if this'll all be fixed, but if it is, that's one less headache you'll have to deal with..." she said. She continued walking. Unbeknownst to her, the man dissolved into shadow shortly after. She walked past a small grocery store. She went inside, where the only person left was the elderly cashier. She noticed a mop suspended in midair, apparently in the process of cleaning up a spilled drink. She wiped the floor clean. Afterwards, she grabbed a popsicle. She dug through her pockets before pulling out a few yen, placing them on the counter. "Keep the change, Jii-san." she said, before leaving. The cashier then vanished. Rin kept the popsicle stick in her mouth after finishing it. She saw her reflection on a store window. "Good grief! What a pain! HOLY SHIT!" she said in a deepened voice. She sighed. "What I would give to hear that again..." She walked, and walked, and kept walking. She performed small favors for people she came across: picking them up from a fall, stopping an accident in progress, among other things. At one point she moved a baseball to where the young batter would be able to hit it, rather than strike out. And each time, without her seeing it, the person she helped vanished. Eventually, she found herself in a familiar spot. The sign in front of her read "Aokigahara National Forest". "This is..." She thought back. Almost two years prior she had been in such despair that she travelled to these woods to end her life. She still had the scars on her arm as proof. Only now, she knew what the source of her despair was. "If I went in here again...nobody would come save me this time. But I...could never..." She thought for a moment. Finally, she resolved to venture inside. "I have to face my fear sometime..." She began making her way through the dense forest. Leaves were suspended in the air. She recalled the wind and rain from the last time she was here, but none of that was present now. As she wondered what it was she was even looking for, she saw something that stopped her dead in her tracks. She saw a figure above her, standing on a branch. Quickly transforming, Rin leapt up to where the figure was. She saw that it was a girl, roughly the same age as her, in full school uniform. There was a noose around her neck, and she appeared to be in mid-jump. After staring in disbelief, Rin slowly removed the noose. She grabbed the girl, and leapt to the ground below. She gently laid the girl down in her frozen state. "...looks about my age. What must be going through your head right now? Still...if you have so much hurt in your heart to do something like this, why would you still be here, begging in your heart for immortality? Maybe...you know this isn't the answer?" She paused. "I don't know what led you here...what circumstances brought you to this point...but you don't deserve this kind of fate. I don't even know if you can hear this, but just know that there are people that care. I'm sure there's someone out there who would be extremely hurt over what you're doing. That's how it was with me...I just wish that I could help more than this. I wish I could fix everyone's troubles, but I can't even fix my own. But maybe...if you're down here instead of up there, maybe you'll reconsider. Where there's life...there's hope." Rin went back to her normal self. She got up, and turned to grab her bag. "Alright, I'm going to--" She turned, and saw that the girl had disappeared. She went over to where the girl was. "I don't get it...why..." "It would seem that you aren't quite done changing people's hearts, my troubled Fool." Rin quickly turned around. There stood Farquhar. "Tch. Now you decide to show up." she griped. "I'm sorry, Ringo. There were matters I needed to--" "'Matters'? There were things more important to take care of than the world being ruined? And what happened to the girl?" "You happened, Ringo. Remember, this world has combined with the cognitive world. Your words and actions resonated with her heart. She came to your way of thinking, and as a result..." Rin was in disbelief. She fell to her knees. "I don't believe it...I thought I was saving her. I just finished the job for her! Is that what I've been doing all this time?! I thought I was helping all those people. All this time that's what I thought. But I've just been killing them! I killed everyone! I...I..." She put her hands to her face and started to sob. "I'm sorry, Ms. Kubo. I needed to sort a few things out." "And I needed you! Rose needed you! You remember her? The girl you made to be a puppet? Well she's gone now too. Gone with everyone else. But do you move a finger? Nope. I mean, why should you even care? You're probably making another one! I'd love to see you even attempt it. You could make a whole army and never make another her. She can never come back. None of them can. You gave me the keys to the kingdom, and I ended up sending everyone to Hell. And you had things to sort out, Mr. All-Powerful. Well I hope it was all worth it. Cuz it hasn't fixed what's happened here." "Is that what you're doing right now? Running away from him is fixing the issue?" "I'm not running from him. I'm acknowledging that I can't beat him like this. So I'll beat him by ignoring him. His stupid plan won't work unless I go crawling to him. I'll never give him the satisfaction." "Y'know what, I'm curious. What was so important that you put aside your 'greatest creation' being murdered? Or the million other things that are wrong with this? I'd love to hear it." "I was sorting through our options with a certain associate of mine. And...we may have a way to solve this." "Solve it. As in...?" "As in we can resume the flow of time and bring everyone back. But it's a drastic solution. And we need you for it, Ms. Kubo." "Anything. Anything. I don't care what it takes, I need...I need to set this right. Please, I'll do anything. What's the plan?" "I believe that my associate can explain it better..." Farquhar snapped his fingers, and the two teleported away. --- ... "It would seem this meeting has been long overdue." Rin opened her eyes. She looked around. She was inside the cabin of a ferris wheel. Everything was tinted velvet. She had been here once before. This was where she was first introduced to Farquhar and...her. She looked forward. Sitting across from her was an odd-looking old man, with an impossibly long nose, bulging eyes, a black suit and white gloves. "Apologies for my late arrival. Other matters required my attention. But with the situation now dire, allow me to offer my formal greeting. Welcome, Ringo Kubo...to the Velvet Room." His softer voice belied his odd appearance. "My name is Igor. I am the true owner of this Velvet Room, a place that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is my duty to guide those bestowed with a contract along the proper path. And it would seem, your path has reached an impasse." "The machinations of the ancient Titan have led to the merging of the conscious and the unconscious. Time has reached a standstill, and those with defiance in their hearts have vanished from existence. At the center of this are two who have had darkness pervade their hearts, whom the Titan has chosen as his avatars. The murderer, Nobuhiro Yamatsu, known by you as Kamiya Tsurai. And your brother, Tohru Kubo." "Why...why my brother?" Rin asked. "Cronus held dominion over time, eons ago. Even now, visions pervaded his mind of potential futures. One that caused him to act was that of a red-haired girl, scarred by death, hastening his downfall. So using the power he still held, deep within the depths of Tartarus, he granted power to two who could stop you. A blood relative you would be hesitant to fight, and an obsessed fanatic who would test your virtue at every turn. He stoked the flames of your brother's hatred, turning his resentment towards death into an unholy desire for immortality. For a Titan who gave rise to life itself, the destruction of death itself would give him unlimited power. The age of the Titans would begin again, with your brother and his legions as his dutiful servants." "Tohru...wants me to serve him. He says this entire journey was to make me strong enough to boss around what's left of humanity. How could I ever fight him the way he is now?" Rin asked. Then, Farquhar appeared. "You give him what he wants." "Huh?" "He wants you to be strong enough to serve him. So, become strong enough to defeat him. And you do that in the same way that he did. By seeking council and unity with a god. By recreating yourself enough times that you and the deity become as one in purpose. Gain the power he did, and you may be able to bring back those who have been taken." "How would that even work?" "His power allowed him to erase life. So, by gaining power opposing his, it is possible to bring back that which his power destroyed. The process would be excruciating, both to your mind and spirit. But it remains our only course of action." Igor explained. Rin stayed silent. "This...could bring everyone back? Mama...Tan...and my friends? And I'd be able to stop Tohru once and for all?" "Yes. All we would need is a deity that would agree to it. And I happen to know just the one." Farquhar said. "You...? Just who are you?" Farquhar paused. "It seems that there's no point in hiding it any longer. If you hadn't guessed by now, I am no mere mortal being. My true identity..." He removed his glasses. His eyes were black holes, filled with what appeared to be stars. "My name...is Tsukiyomi-no-Mikoto, god of the moon." "You're really a god? Then what's all this been about?" "I will explain once you meet with the one I speak of. We must make haste. She is a stickler for being on time." Rin got up. "Good luck to you, Ringo Kubo. It is no exaggeration to say that life itself is reliant on your success. No pressure...hehehehehe..." said Igor. Tsukiyomi snapped his fingers, and teleported off with Rin. The two appeared at the base of a large, heavenly stairway. The place was bathed in a brilliant light. They started ascending. "So, Mr. Fa--Tsukiyomi. Why can't you perform this yourself?" Rin asked. "My power...has waned with the centuries. Worship for the power of the moon is nowhere near the equivalent towards the sun. In addition, your brother has frozen time at the height of the afternoon. My power is at it's weakest. But the one we are meeting, cannot be stronger than she is now." "Why the disguise? Why create Rose? Why...anything?" Tsukiyomi was silent. "The sun...is the bringer of life. Her light bestows vitality upon all of the world's creatures. She is truly a force to be revered...and it is this reverence that drives me forward. I seek the appreciation for life that she possesses. And so...I made Rosemary as someone who would love life itself above all else. And love life, she did. Her love for life, for you, is why I let her stay by you for as long as she desires it. That she was made to suffer in the manner she did, and that my power could never bring her back...brings me the most sickening despair. That is why we need her. The bringer of life's light...my beloved." They reached the top of the stairs. Beyond the arc at the top, was a single, stone platform. At the far end, staring out to the sky, was a dark-haired woman wearing a long, white kimono. "Amaterasu..." Tsukiyomi mused. "Amaterasu...the Sun Goddess...I'm staring at the literal Sun right now..." Rin pondered. The pair stepped forward. "...hi, honey." Tsukiyomi sheepishly said. Amaterasu didn't move. Then, a transparent hand appeared and slapped Tsukiyomi across the face, surprising Rin. "Ow!" "Don't 'hi honey' me, you buffoon! What makes you think you can talk to me so casually?!" Amaterasu yelled, still refusing to turn around. "Ooh, you anger me so much! Dearest child, would you like to know why the moon and sun stay so far apart? Because this imbecile can't attend a feast without killing the host! 'Oh, I didn't like how the food was made.' Idiot!" Rin looked at Tsukiyomi, who was rubbing his face. "...it was made unnaturally, I didn't--" "She was the food goddess, you twit! That kind of gives her the right to prepare food however she pleases!" "Um...can we save the lovers' quarrel stuff for therapy? I think we have bigger problems..." Rin piped up. "Ah, right. How impolite of me. Sorry, this brute brings out my worst qualities. On that note, 'honey', would you kindly disappear?" Amaterasu said. Tsukiyomi sighed. "Fine, fine. I'm going." He turned to leave. "Stay yourself, Ms. Kubo. It is our only chance of winning. Rosemary and everyone else are depending on it..." He teleported away. "...is he gone?" Amaterasu asked. "Y-yeah, he's gone." "Oh, thank Izanagi. He enrages me so." She turned around. Rin was surprised to see that her face was nearly identical to Rose's. She knew that couldn't be accidental. "As the ape said, I am Amaterasu-ōmikami, Goddess of the Sun. But you can call me Ammy." "I-it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Amaterasu." "No, seriously. Call me Ammy." "M-Miss Ammy, you see what's happening on Earth, right?" "Of course I do. Mortals believing they can be gods and utterly desecrating the sanctity of life. Something that occurs far too often, I'm afraid. Come, let me get a better look at you." Rin walked over, and knelt down next to Amaterasu. The goddess grabbed her hands, and studied her arms. She looked into Rin's eyes. "My, such a beautiful, bright spirit, yet so scarred by death. This world has not been kind to you. You seek to undo what your kin has wrought onto the world, yes?" "Yes, yes I do. Can you help me? Can you help me bring everyone back?" "Dearest girl, I hold sway over life's most important source. There are few things that I am not capable of. However..." "However?" "Your brother possesses a power that, combined with the Titan's, makes undoing his actions that much more difficult. Even someone with my power could not oppose it." "So then...it's hopeless..." "I never said that." "What your brother did was destroy and restructure his spirit to such an extent that he and the Titan became one in purpose. So naturally, undoing his magics would require doing the same thing. And the one person who can do it is you. The power you hold within you directly opposes his. So, with my power intertwined with yours...we could undo the damage he's caused." "Then let's do it. I'm ready. I have to do this." "I would be remiss if I failed to mention the dangers of doing this. This will test and strain your spirit to its utmost limits. There is a possibility that your very sense of self could be broken, that you as a person may disappear. There even remains the potential of you shifting to your brother's way of thinking. Knowing that you could be eradicating yourself...do you still want to do this?" "Absolutely. One-hundred and ninety percent. Whatever it takes." "Very well. Know this. It took your brother over a full year to complete his process." Amaterasu gave a smirk. "I think we can beat that." "Now, close your eyes. The first step in strengthening your mind and spirit, is to remember what it is you're living for. Picture it in your mind." Rin closed her eyes. Visions floated in her mind. "Remember." She was at her mother's shop. She stared at her brother. He blinked, and reeled back. Her mother was at the register, humming to herself. "Remember." She was sitting on the couch in her dorm. Tenko sat next to her, drinking sake and giggling. "Remember." She was on a boat, holding a giant fish she'd just caught. Shūjo gave an approving thumbs-up. "Remember." She was at the arcade. She had beaten the standard mode in Tekken 3. Jin patted her on the back. "Remember." She was in a makeshift red costume, performing for the orphans. Hiyoko sat by, clapping in approval. "Remember." She was at a street festival, playing a game where she shot bottles with a prop rifle. Jugo helped steady her aim. "Remember." She was at the flower shop. She picked out a rosemary flower, and placed it in Rose's uniform. Rose gave a bright smile. Rin opened her eyes. They glowed with a pure white light. "There. Now...let us begin." --- A few days later, Rin sat on the edge of the platform, looking out. "Tea?" asked Amaterasu. "Oh, thanks." Rin answered, taking a cup. Amaterasu brought out Rin's photo. "These are your friends, yes? I saw them during the first mental exercise." "Yeah, that's them. That was from...well, technically speaking it was still a couple weeks ago. I think that was the happiest we'd all been since this started. Seems like an eternity ago now..." "And this girl next to you...this is Rose, correct? The girl Tsukiyomi created?" Rin paused. "Yeah...that's her. But she wasn't just some kind of factory creation. She was...special." "She was akin to a sister to you." "She was...is...she is my sister." "Of course. I was curious. Your loved ones all weigh heavily on your conscience, but her most of all." Rin was silent for a moment. "She was innocent. Completely, totally innocent. She loved everything that life had to offer. She loved being able to feel love. Someone so pure, so devoid of sin...and Tohru did what he did anyway. I could never forgive that. I was just as torn up about Papa's death, but that doesn't excuse what he's doing." Amaterasu pondered what to say next. "Rin. There is something we must take care of before progressing further. Something that is hindering your development." "What do you mean?" "There is something that is holding you back. Your brother holds something over you, something you fear from the bottom of your soul. I think you know what." "Let me in once more, Rin. Let's take care of your lingering despair." She placed her hands on each side of Rin's face. Rin closed her eyes. She awoke to the feeling of rain drops hitting her back. She lay on the ground in the middle of the forest. She got up and looked around. She went back to her arms. Scarred, red, dirty with the forest's soil and leaves. Then, a voice called out to her. "This is where we always return to, isn't it, apple blossom?" Even after eight years, she recognized the voice. She turned around. There stood a man with dark hair, glasses and a purple plaid shirt. He looked as he did when she had seen him last. "P...Papa?" she stuttered. She forced her legs to move. She ran straight to him, and embraced him. "Sweet mother of all lemons, when did you get so big?" he asked. "It's been eight years, Papa...I'd be worried if I wasn't just a little bit taller." she answered. "Fair enough, I suppose." She held him tighter. "I...I missed you so much, Papa..." "I know, I know. I missed you too, apple blossom." "But why are you here, Papa? And...why does it have to be here? I hate this place so much..." "Well, if the touchy sun lady's on the money, I'd say you're here to sort out some things. As for why it's me here, well...it looks like your brother's gone and made a mess of things, hasn't he?" "He killed Mama and Tan, Papa. Them, my friends, so many other people...he says he wants to make a new world where everyone'll live forever. He's insane, Papa." Her father sighed. "That boy...where did I go so wrong with him? I know he's not just doing this because he's mad about what happened to me. Plenty of kids lose a parent at a young age. They don't all destroy the world like this." He let out a groan. "That dumb little...I know what it is. He's still trying to prove he's not second to baby sis, isn't he?" "I think it might be, Papa. Just taken to the absolute extreme. He wants me serving him, to convince whoever's left to obey him. As big as this is, as much as he dresses it up...it's all because he hates me so much. I just don't know why..." "I think...this might be my fault. I gave him everything he wanted and needed. I told him my old man's mantra to never be second at anything. I always believed that being the best that you were capable of was the key to happy living. Looks like he took the first part to heart. I think that's where the jealous streak started. He saw how well you did and how happy you were, and saw that as you not putting any effort into anything." "Please don't blame yourself, Papa. I should've taken things more seriously growing up. Maybe then he wouldn't--" "Now don't go blaming yourself for this. Apologize for being a happy kid, and you might as well say that Tohru wins. You don't apologize for being you, apple blossom." "Now, then...let's get down to why we're here. What's this place to you, Rin-chan?" "This is...the worst place ever. This is where I gave into despair and tried ending everything. No...this...this is where I gave Tohru the idea that I could be his puppet. That he could do whatever he wanted to me and I wouldn't even know it was him..." She looked at her arms, and they started shaking. "I hate these scars so much...! Everything that he's done to me...it all starts and ends with these things! I hide them and that makes me look ashamed by my past. I show them amd it's like I'm proud of what he made me do. It's like I'm a cow he's branded! I hate them so much...and...I..." Her father grabbed her hands. "You can't say it, can you?" Rin was silent. "Everything he's said, everything he's done...he's still your brother. And you can't bring yourself to hate him. There's still part of you that wants to forgive him, come up with some excuse. I know. I do too. That Titan's polluted his mind, but at the end of the day, there had to be something there for him to pollute. That's what's stopping you from progressing forward. You're afraid that this can't end any other way...than watching him die again. I on the money?" Rin didn't say a word. "Listen, kiddo. This isn't an easy thing to decide. You either take your brother out for good, or everyone else. But Tohru made his bed. He made the decision for everyone, even if they didn't want it. Don't you think your friends want to be here with you right now? I'm sure your mom's bored stiff with no pachinko parlors around." "Pachinko...?" "Aw, crud. Forget I said anything. What I'm saying is this. As hard as it is to say this about my own son, Tohru threw away his life. Then he gave himself a second chance and used it to take away everyone else's. You're the only one that can save them. And maybe ending this thing is the only way to save him." He put his hand on her shoulder. "You're the writer of this story, Rin-chan. There's still a chance for a happy ending. You know that the hero's journey has to include the tough decisions. He's made his. And you have your old man's permission to make him regret it. So before I go, there's just one thing I want to hear from you." "Of course Papa. What is it?" "What is Rin-chan?" Through the rain and the tears, Rin gave a smile. "Rin-chan is like an apple, red and sweet and good. Rin-chan is a happy girl, happiest in the whole world. And..." "Nobody writes Rin-chan's story...except Rin-chan." Her father smiled. "That's my girl. Now c'mere." They embraced. "I love you, apple blossom." "I love you too, Papa." "Give him hell for me." The forest began to disappear into light. "Give your Ma and Tan my love." "You bet. And I won't tell Mama about the pachinko thing." He gave a thumbs-up, and disappeared. Rin opened her eyes. "So. Has your mind been put at ease?" Amaterasu asked. Rin looked at her arms. "Yeah. Everything's all fine." Her scars had disappeared. "Now let's get back to business. My brother's butt won't kick itself."